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Home , Guddu Barrage, Indus River, Indus River Delta, Samudra, Taunsa Barrage

- : the long march

Item Type article

Authors Bhatti, Roshan Ali

Download date 24/09/2021 02:48:12

Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/1834/40410 Pakistan DAMS The Long March

A Peoples Long March against dams on the Indus , organized by the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum, earned widespread support and solidarity from the fishing and peasant community of

he Sindh Peoples Long March forming the Indus delta. The tail-end was a massive public action that farmers and other communities of Sindh Tinvolved a 16-day walk of over were facing tremendous difficulties due 200 km from a small fishing village to the unavailability of water. in the Indus and The Long March manifesto aimed culminated at the Governor House, to: oppose all dams on the , Sindh, in . The long march, including the and Basha which started on 10 October 2018 dams; restore the natural flow of the and ended on 25 October 2018, was Indus River; help the Indus River organized by Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum reach its final destination; and prevent (PFF) and got widespread support and future dams and diversions on the solidarity from the fishing and peasant Indus River. community of Sindh, civil society The Indus River, also locally organizations (CSOs) and the media. called Sindhu, is one of the longest 26 The Long March demanded that the in . Originating in the Tibetan federal government and Supreme Court Plateau, the final destination of the of Pakistan (SCP) cancel the construction river is the River Indus Delta in district of any on the Indus River as the of Sindh, the southern province rampant construction of dams and of Pakistan. It is the longest river and the barrages on the river had led to national river of Pakistan. The river has erosion and saline intrusion which was historically been important to many destroying coastal cities and districts. cultures of the region. The Indus River came into the knowledge of the West early in the Classical Period, when King Darius of Persia sent his Greek ...all international and national laws prohibit construction subject to explore of any mega-dams on the Indus River system... the river, circa 515 BC. The Indus is one of the few rivers in the world to exhibit a . The forms where the Indus River flows into the Arabian The PFF wanted to make the Sea, in the Southern Sindh province authorities realize that Sindh, being in of Pakistan. The delta covers an area of the lower riparian area, had suffered about 41,440 sq km (16,000 sq miles), the most following the destruction of and is approximately 210 km (130 mi) the Indus River and the Indus Delta across where it meets the sea. due to stoppage of freshwater flow that Since the 1940s, the delta has had been majorly caused by dams and received less water as a result of large- barrages built previously. Moreover, all scale irrigation works capturing large international and national laws prohibit amounts of the Indus water before it construction of any mega-dams on the reaches the delta. The result has been Indus River system without the consent catastrophic for both the environment of lower riparian communities. and the local population. Rejecting the Experts, along with the provincial This article is by Roshan Ali Bhatti ([email protected]), Manager, completely, the Long March highlighted , agree on the fact Monitoring and Evaluation, Pakistan that dams on the Indus River were that a freshwater flow of 30 million acre- Fisherfolk Forum (PFF), Pakistan destroying Sindh villages and cities foot (MAF) is needed for the survival of

SAMUDRA REPORT NO. 80 DAMS

MUSTAFA ALI SHAH

Sindh Peoples Long March 2018 against all dams on River Indus in Pakistan. The natural flow of water and fertile sediments from the Indus River into the delta has been impeded due to the construction of dams and barrages along the river the Indus River Delta. Above all, 10 MAF the delta dolphin population from those of freshwater flow was agreed upon by dolphins upstream. The Indus delta has the Pakistan state in an infamous accord shrunk by 92 per cent since 1833. In light known as the Water Apportionment of these threats, the Indus Delta was Accord of 1991. But the accord had designated a in 2002. 27 also remained null and void up until A few months back, a pro-dam now. According to the Institute of campaign was launched. Some Oceanography, there is a 1.3 mm sea influential leaders are collecting level rise annually, and 3,500,000 acres donations for the construction of the of land of the Indus River Delta have Basha Dam on the Indus River and also been destroyed by sea intrusion. talk approvingly about the construction For more Before the development of an of the controversial Kala Bagh Dam. http://pff.org.pk/ irrigation system on the Indus River, Previously, three barrages on the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) the entire flow passed through Sindh’s Indus – the , the to the , culminating Barrage and the barrage – along https://dc.icsf.net/en/component/dcnews/ articledetail/12455-Pakistan--A-200.html into 17 branches called creeks and with the Kala Bagh Barrage, the Chasma A 200 kilometer journey on foot forming the seventh largest delta of the Barrage and the had been against Dams on River Indus, Sindh world. An annual flow of over 180 MAF, built on the Indus River. The Peoples Long March, October 10-25, carrying a silt load of about 440 mn Dam is also on the Indus River. 2018 tonnes, passes through the Indus into Such rampant construction of dams https://dc.icsf.net/en/component/dcnews/ the Arabian Sea. and barrages on the river has caused articledetail/10494-Pakistan--Indus.html Until the 1980s, forests of widespread sea erosion and saline Indus River Canyon declared second the delta covered an area of 600,000 ha intrusion, which, in turn, has destroyed Marine Protected Area of Pakistan (1,500,000 acres) and could be found coastal cities and districts. It is to stop along the entire 240-km coastline. But this continuing destruction that the https://dc.icsf.net/en/component/dcnews/ articledetail/12265-Pakistan--Disru.html the mangrove area has since reduced to PFF and CSOs have banded together Disruptive marine weather lowers 86,000 ha. to petition the Federal Government catch for small-scale fishermen The natural flow of water and and the Supreme Court of Pakistan fertile sediments from the Indus River to put an end to such ill-conceived https://www.icsf.net/images/what%20 is%20new%20page/Inland%20 into the delta had been impeded “development” projects. Fisheries%20policy%20note%20by%20 due to the construction of dams and ICSF.pdf barrages along the river. The reduction Governance of water and of freshwater due to the dams also freshwater fish production systems increases salinity, making the waters of in : Is there need for a national the delta unsuitable for the freshwater policy to protect fishers and species. In case of the Indus dolphin, fishworkers?: Draft for Comments the damming of the river has isolated - by ICSF

DECEMBER 2018